One would need a whole book to record their thoughts on this honourable
revolution, but I will keep it short due to the limited time and space,
and talk a little about what I saw the first week, until the time comes
to tell everything.

Ahram Online: As a writer and novelist, how do you perceive the book Who Makes Crisis in Egypt within your writing career?

Ibrahim Abdel-Meguid: As a young writer, I always
thought of journalistic writing as a danger to creative writing, and
didn’t think it could be possible to mix the two. At the same time, I
looked at great novelists like Gabriel Garcia Marquez who worked as
journalists and it didn’t impact their careers.

I decided to delve into this language when I realised I could make a
distinction between the two modes: the fast, mass-reading, simple style
required for writing in a newspaper versus the rigorous building and
language required for novels.

These different modes were reflected even in my routine: I write
articles in the mornings or at least when people are awake before
midnight, leaving my door open and sometimes I write listening to the
television or to crowds. Novels and creative writing I start after 2am
when everyone is asleep and the world is silent. Then I close my door,
put on some classical music, diving into a different mode.

My compiling these articles in a book is actually a form of
documentation. I realised that some of the articles I wrote somewhat
tell the story of what happened. They record history, as I perceived it
then, not as a historian but as a writer. The way I look at things is
that the SCAF are the cause for all the crisis in Egypt, this is my
perspective.

In Egypt it’s usual to think in terms of specialisation; a writer
should only write novels and stories but not scenarios. But looking at
European renaissance artists and writers, many of them went across
various forms of creative practice; Victor Hugo the great writer had
some paintings, Dali wrote books and so on. I decided not to limit
myself to one form or style but to experiment with different forms.

AO: Your newest book, Iftar Hour Stories, is a whole new style. How did that happen?

IAM: The idea started when the newspaper where I write
regularly, proposed that I write something about Ramadan folklore, but
the time was too tight to allow for this. I suggested instead writing
these short stories all related to the hour of sunset, Iftar, to be
published daily in serials throughout Ramadan, and they agreed.

I'm not afraid to experiment and to try myself in new genres, since the world is vast and large there's room for many things.

As a first experience, it was scary and even Khairy Shalaby, the late
renowned writer, called me in total surprise that I write at this pace,
knowing that I normally would write, review, re-review, and proofread
before sharing. It was an exciting experience, but not likely to be
repeated unless a similar insight comes again. This year it is collected
and published as a book.

My sad memories of this hour have been with me since my early days in
Cairo when I lived alone for several years. Iftar bears for me the
saddest memories when I was alone, while my whole family back in
Alexandria were gathering for Iftar and enjoying each others' company.
This sad recollection has stayed with me till now, and it made me
realise that many people have memories about this very unique hour when
Muslims around the country gather to break their day-long fast at the
same instant. I gathered these memories from many years ago, and added
other imaginary stories.

The spirit of the revolution is present in various stories: the first
for example depicts a family whose son died in the revolution and they
were missing him on the table and received a spiritual message from him.
There's the story about the police who were waiting for an official to
pass by, and he never came despite Iftar and they had to endure
additional time in the heat without food. There's the real story of the
youth sitting in Tahrir Square during Ramadan, who offered the police
food when they were breaking their fast, knowing these same people will
be hitting them as soon as they finish eating.

...

AO: Are we likely to see the impact of the revolution on your writing anytime soon?

IAM: I'm not sure yet, I still have to find a way to
look at this great act of revolution in its entirety. Right now, the
efforts to document are somewhat fine and tackle diverse angles, but I'm
still missing what I experienced myself.

In general, we must acknowledge that creativity had already crossed the
taboos of politics, sex and religion long before the revolution. What
the revolution brought to the surface is a breaking of remaining fears.

We are, however, still waiting for new creative production that can
match this new liberation from fear. Right now the common sense on the
street has surpassed complex analysis, and creative production will
hopefully soon catch up.

Artists remain skeptical about free expression after meeting with Morsy

On Thursday, President Mohamed Morsy met with a group
of writers, filmmakers, actors and artists at the presidential palace in
Heliopolis. The turnout among the invitees was moderate, as some of the
country’s intelligentsia refuse to “deal in any way with an Islamist
state.” From those who showed up, many hailed the president’s
statements, reassuring them that freedom of opinion is guaranteed, and
the country’s creative and cultural richness is as relevant as its
material developments according to the state-owned Middle East News
Agency.

Still, skepticism looms with the events that followed the meeting, from the police raid
on book vendors on Nabi Daniel Street in Alexandria on Friday to the
repeated controversial statements by some Salafi sheikhs describing
artists as “prostitutes” and condemning cultural icons like Om Kalthoum
and Abdel Halim Hafez for their romantic lyrics. Over the past few
months, Egypt’s top comedian Adel Imam, along with a number of
established filmmakers and screenwriters, has also been charged with
committing blasphemy against Islam for films they took part in over a
decade ago, and Imam was sentenced to three months in prison and a fine
of LE1,000. (The Haram Misdemeanor Appeals Court acquitted Imam of those charges Wednesday).

Renowned author Gamal al-Ghitany is among those who refused
to attend the meeting with Morsy, describing it as one for “taking
photos rather than running cultural dialogue.” Ghitany believes that
“there aren’t any chances for real dialogue, especially under their [the
Brotherhood’s] exclusionary practices.” He cites how all of the public
figures suggested by the Culture Ministry as potential members of the
Constituent Assembly were not included in the final selection. He does
not foresee dialogue, but rather predicts a full clash with Islamists.

Others, including author Ibrahim Abdel Meguid, have
different views. Before attending the meeting, Abdel Meguid supported
running dialogue with the new regime, saying cultural practitioners
should communicate their concerns, get clear answers and discuss
solutions. This, however, did not happen during the meeting, according
to Abdel Meguid.

“The president gave a small speech around how he
appreciates ‘meaningful’ arts,” Abdel Meguid tells Egypt Independent.
“[Then] we told the president our demands. But, he did not give any
[concrete] reassurances, and that is depressing.”

He does, however, see a beginning of a conversation as
Morsy stressed his appreciation of the arts and condemned the recent
attack on actress Ilham Shaheen by a Salafi sheikh who described her as
committing “on-air adultery” in her films.

“The apology is a good sign,” says Abdel Meguid, adding
that it needs to be supported with laws and actions on the ground to
protect freedom of speech and creativity.

“We are not demanding the president prevent Islamists from
expressing their opinions, but we need laws to protect arts and our
freedom of speech as well,” he adds.

Film producer Medhat al-Adl supports dialogue with
Islamists. Although his column criticizing the president’s relationship
with the Brotherhood was banned last month in the state-owned Akhbar
al-Youm after the appointment of Mohamed Hassan al-Banna as
editor-in-chief, he participated in a recent open discussion with
Islamist activist Islam Bokhary and preacher Fadel Suleiman at El Sawy
Culture Wheel. Adl also told Egypt Independent that he would not have
hesitated to attend the meeting with the president, had he been invited.
He sees the president’s recent statements as positive, but believes
that Morsy has limited influence on radical Islamist groups.

“I think we should accept any invitation for dialogue, in
order not to give radical groups the chance to criticize us,” Adl
explains.

Prominent novelist Sonallah Ibrahim — known for his staunch
criticism and his stand against the Mubarak regime through his writings
and refusal of the 2003 Arab Novel Award — also recognizes the
importance of dialogue. In a talk Tuesday night at the Alef Bookstore in
Heliopolis, he told the audience, “I disagree with President Morsy, but
this regime has legitimacy and was brought about by the people.” He
added though that the recent meeting with Morsy is not a measure of
respect for freedom of artistic creation and expression. “We want to see
respect for creativity on the ground; this is the most important thing,
along with the need to represent all creative workers in such
meetings.”